- Tunisia voting ends as Saied eyes re-election with critics behind bars
- Florida braces for Milton, FEMA head slams 'dangerous' Helene misinformation
- Postecoglou slams 'unacceptable' Spurs after 'terrible' loss at Brighton
- Marmoush double denies Bayern outright Bundesliga top spot
- Rallies worldwide call for Gaza, Lebanon ceasefire
- New 'Joker' film, a dark musical, tops N.America box office
- Man Utd stalemate keeps Ten Hag in danger, Spurs rocked by Brighton
- Drowned by hurricane, remote N.Carolina towns now struggle for water
- Vikings hold off Jets in London to stay unbeaten
- Ahead of attack anniversary, Netanyahu says: 'We will win'
- West Indies cruise to T20 World Cup win over Scotland
- Man Utd fire another blank in Aston Villa stalemate
- Lewandowski treble powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Russian activist killed on front line in Ukraine
- Openda strike briefly sends Leipzig top of Bundesliga
- Goal-shy Man Utd have to 'step up', says Ten Hag
- India bowl out Bangladesh for 127 in T20 opener
- Madueke rescues Chelsea in draw with 10-man Forest
- Beckett's belief rewarded as Bluestocking storms to Arc glory
- Trump on the stump, Harris hits airwaves in razor-edge US election
- Flash flooding kills three in northern Thailand
- Kaur leads India to victory over Pakistan in Women's T20 World Cup
- Juventus held by Cagliari after late penalty drama
- In France's Marseille, teen 'stabbed 50 times' then burned alive
- Ruthless Gauff beats Muchova in straight sets to win China Open
- India restrict Pakistan to 105-8 in Women's T20 World Cup
- England target repeat of Pakistan Test whitewash
- Penrith Panthers win fourth straight NRL title after downing Storm
- Weary Sinner happy for day off after battling into Shanghai last 16
- Pakistan's Masood warns England still a force without Stokes
- Madrid's Carvajal to miss several months after serious knee injury
- Two elephants die in flash flooding in northern Thailand
- Sabalenka targets world number one and Wuhan hat-trick
- Tunisia votes with Saied set for re-election
- Bagnaia sets 'example' with Japan MotoGP win to cut gap on Martin
- Intense Israeli bombing rocks Beirut ahead of war anniversary
- Mozambique vote: no suspense but some disillusion
- Austrian rapper channels anti-racist rage in Romani hip-hop songs
- Ohtani magic powers Dodgers over Padres in MLB playoff thriller
- Five of the best: Pakistan-England Test thrillers
- Man sets arm on fire as marches across US mark Gaza war anniversary
- Vietnam's young coffee entrepreneurs brew up a revolution
- Trump rallies at site of failed assassination: 'Never quit'
- Too hot by day, Dubai's floodlit beaches are packed at night
- Is music finally reckoning with #MeToo?
- Fans hail Trump's 'guts' as he returns to site of rally shooting
- Lebanon state media says Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Miami on track for MLS record points after win in Toronto
- Monaco take top spot in Ligue 1 with win at Rennes
- Madrid beat Villarreal to level Liga leaders Barca
European stocks climb on bargain hunting
European stock markets climbed Friday as investors fished for bargains after recent Ukraine-driven losses, with London buoyed also by news of an economic rebound for Britain.
Frankfurt jumped 1.0 percent and Paris gained 0.4 percent just after midday, while London won 0.9 percent in late morning trade to shrug off earlier Asian losses.
Oil rallied on Iran supply fears but remained below the 14-year peak near $140 hit Monday on worries of a severe fallout from key producer Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The pound and yen hit multi-year dollar lows, as spiking US inflation fanned expectations the Federal Reserve would deliver aggressive interest rate hikes.
- First weekly rise since war -
"European stocks are set for their first weekly rise since the start of the war, as investors digest the latest... (ECB) policy decision and a pleasant surprise from UK GDP data," said City Index analyst Fiona Cincotta.
Investors were reassured after European Central Bank head Christine Lagarde on Thursday said the ECB would "take whatever action is needed" to shield the eurozone from Ukraine fallout and sky-high energy prices.
The central bank froze borrowing costs and pushed back the start of a potential interest rate hike, despite record euro-area inflation.
Sentiment also brightened Friday as data showed the UK economy rebounded 0.8 percent in January after a 0.2-percent decline in December, as Omicron coronavirus curbs were lifted.
Markets have nevertheless been rocked ever since Russia shocked the world by invading its neighbour Ukraine on February 24.
"For now, the markets appear to have priced in the bad news," added Cincotta.
"Bargain hunters are out which is perhaps not surprising given the steep declines we have seen over the past three weeks."
Oil jumped Friday after the European Union revealed talks it is chairing about the revival of the 2015 nuclear accord with crude producer Iran must be paused, days after fresh demands from Russia complicated negotiations.
- Red-hot US inflation -
Wall Street had slid Thursday as peace talks between Russia and Ukraine stalled, with sentiment also dented by news that US inflation hit a new 40-year high of 7.9 percent in February.
Asian equities mostly fell Friday as traders resumed their Ukraine-fuelled selling after the previous day's bounce.
News of red-hot US inflation comes ahead of next week's Fed policy meeting, where it is expected to announce the first of what could be up to seven interest rate hikes this year.
While a phase of tightening is certain, speculation has been rife about how many and how steep the rises will be.
The war has given officials an extra headache as the surge in oil markets will add upward pressure to consumer prices, though the bank must tread a fine line between fighting inflation and trying to prevent a recession.
Oil has been extremely volatile ever since Moscow's invasion, with traders still fretting over Western moves to ban Russian crude.
"It's been a rollercoaster ride for oil this week, and for some, the weekend cannot come quick enough," said Stephen Innes Managing Partner at SPI Asset Management.
- Key figures around 1130 GMT -
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.9 percent at 7,163.70 points
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 1.0 percent at 13,572.85
Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.4 percent at 6,233.99
EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.6 percent at 3,671.73
Brent North Sea crude: UP 3.8 percent at $113.54 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 3.5 percent at $109.72
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 2.1 percent at 25,162.78 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.6 percent at 20,553.79 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.4 percent at 3,309.75 (close)
New York - Dow: DOWN 0.3 percent at 33,174.07 (close)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0983 from $1.0986 Thursday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3093 from $1.3086
Euro/pound: DOWN at 83.89 pence from 83.95 pence
Dollar/yen: UP at 116.94 yen from 116.14 yen
burs-rfj/bcp/ach
B.Godinho--PC